There are a number of systems for vinyl railings including vinyl vertical posts secured to a support surface where the post engage the ends of handrails and bottom rails used to support spindles. With any handrail system, it is important that the system can withstand significant loads which are suddenly applied thereto when a person or persons fall against the rail and require the rail to oppose the load. This stability is largely provided by the vertical posts.
Vertical posts are typically anchored at the bottom thereof to the support surface to provide the required high strength connection. For example, the base of a post may include concrete anchors embedded in a horizontal concrete surface with a portion of these anchors extending upwardly into the base of the post and the base of the post being filled with concrete to secure the post to the support surface. In some systems, vinyl posts are applied over wooden support posts which are either anchored to the wooden deck themselves or embedded in concrete to provide the necessary strength.
There is a need to provide a railing system which can be strongly secured to a horizontal surface to provide the necessary structural stability but in a much simpler manner. It has been found that the typical do-it-yourselfer does not want to work with concrete and another arrangement for securing of the post to a horizontal surface is necessary. The present invention provides a mechanical securement of a post to a horizontal surface.